After six months of intense back-door negotiations and highly public outcries of support and damnation, Clive Davis has been ousted from Arista Records.

As The Post first reported in November, BMG Entertainment yesterday named Antonio “L.A.” Reid president and CEO of the 25-year old record label.

Reid, now co-president of LaFace Records, will take over July 1 – the day after Davis’ contract with BMG is up.

“Antonio brings to Arista an inspired track record as a businessman, Grammy Award-winning producer and deeply committed record man,” said Strauss Zelnick, President and CEO of BMG.

“As co-founder and co-president of LaFace Records, he has created a music powerhouse and helped develop some of today’s top pop and R&B artists,” Zelnick said of the Atlanta-based label’s 43-year-old honcho, who was behind such artists as Toni Braxton, Usher and TLC.

The anticipated announcement closes the door on one chapter of the ongoing saga between BMG and its crown jewel, Arista Records, but it leaves the rest of the book wide open – the part about what happens next to departing legend Clive Davis.

At the moment, the 66-year old music mogul is technically out of a job.

But industry sources insist it is only a matter of time – probably within two weeks – until Davis finds a home for his proposed Davis Entertainment, an upstart record, television and Internet conglomerate.

Sources say the music man behind such artists as Whitney Houston, Carlos Santana and The Eurythmics has put together a business plan valued at around $225 million.

The proposal has already made the rounds at all of the major labels – but insiders say BMG, Sony and Universal are the only three that have made bids.

But, according to one high-ranking label insider, “He won’t get as much as he’s asking for.”

“Right now, it’s come down to how much autonomy he’ll be given, what resources are open to him, staff, support for promotion and marketing,” said one source close to the negotiations.

“I’m tremendously proud of what we’ve built at Arista over the 25 years since its inception,” said Davis in a written statement.

“Though I regret the imposition of the Bertelsmann retirement age policy, it’s time now to turn to a new and vital chapter in this fast-changing world of music,” he continued.

The Arista founder, who has become a legendary voice in and around the music industry, added, He “will decide among the very substantial offers we’ve received to begin business in September.”

Davis’ choice of words, however, raised some eyebrows at BMG parent Bertelsmann, which claims the “Bertelsmann retirement age policy” does not exist in the U.S. and that it only pertains to Bertelsmann board members in Germany.

“The nitpicking just goes to show the level of animosity the two sides have for each other,” said one music insider.